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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Dec. 24, 1903. 



After finishing tlie first lot of questions, pass around more slips of 

 paper for questions, and so on until it is time to adjourn. This plan 

 really makes the best convention. Very much depends, however, 

 upon the president, whether the question program is a success or not. 

 For best results, we believe that no bee-keepers' convention should 

 be held oftener than once a year. The bee-keepers in and around Chi- 

 cago tried meeting twice a year, but it seemed to be a failure. The 

 • fall of the year is the best time, say the latter part of November and 

 in December. Of course, there may be exceptional cases where two 

 meetings a year are successful, but we believe in the majority of cases 

 the annual meetings are best. 



Driving Bees. 



This is an important feature of bee-shows in England, prizes be- 

 ing offered tor driving in the shortest time. Yet some are beginning 

 to raise the question whether driving bees should not now be consid- 

 ered a thing of the past. From one point of view it seems a pity to 

 have it discontinued in public exhibitions, as there are in England 

 some who are very expert at it. 



Very likely some, if not many, of the readers of these pages will 

 ask,"Whatdo you mean by 'driving bees,' anyhow?" It means the 

 driving of bees from box-hives into movable-frame hives, and would, 

 perhaps, be better understood by the term " transferring." Yet among 

 the younger members of the craft, in this country, are many who have 

 never seen the process of driving or transferring, for the very good 

 reason that there are no opportunities for the performance, all the 

 bees in their localities being already in hives with movable combs. 

 Localities, however, may still be found in this country where the box- 

 hive is yet in fashion. 



The Life of Bees. 



A fresh contribution to the subject is given by D. M. M., a promi- 

 nent correspondent of the British Bee Journal. To a colony of black 

 bees he gave an Italian queen June 6, liberating her June 7. Eggs 

 were seen June 11. July 22,50 percent of the bees were Italians; 

 July 25, 75 percent; July 29, 90 percent. A few blacks were still seen 

 Aug. 1, and all had disappeared Aug. 6. D. M. M. comments thus : 



" It was marvellous to see how rapidly the blacks disappeared, 

 especially during the last fortnight, when the decrease in numbers was 

 something extraordinary. I calculated that, when the queen was in- 

 serted on June G, the colony numbered 30,000 blacks; yet in 60 days 

 they had all died out, showing an average mortality of about 500 bees 

 per day. In the earlier weeks it was much less so; in the later ones 

 it must have been very considerably greater." 



If we assume that the black queen was removed June 6, that 

 makes 61 days as the life of her latest descendant, supposing it died 

 Aug. 6. That is much more than the six weeks generally accepted as 

 the average life of a worker in the busy season. It is not fair, how- 

 ever, to take the latest survivor as a proper example of average lon- 

 gevity. Yet figure as we may, the data give no fair support to the be- 

 lief that six weeks, or 42 days, is the average length of life. Six weeks 

 from June 6 would give us July IS, when, according to the six-weeks 

 rule, all the blacks should have disappeared, barring a few persistent 

 hangers-on. But July 18 more than half the bees were still blacks. 

 Even if we take July 29 as the time of the demise of the latest-born 

 blacks, a time when a tenth of the blacks were still present, that will 

 give us not less than 53 days as their lifetime. 



Were these bees possessed of unusual longevity, or do our figures 

 as to the lifetime of a worker, in the busy season, need overhauling? 

 Perhaps this is a matter that should be taken up by the experiment 

 stations. 



Honey as a Health-Food is the name of a 16- 

 page leaflet (3>4x6 inches) which is designed to help in- 

 crease the demand and sale of honey. The first part is 

 devoted to a consideration of " Honey as Food," vyritten 

 by Dr. C. C. Miller. The last part contains " Honey-Cook- 

 ing Recipes" and "Remedies Using Honey." It should be 

 widely circulated by every one who has honey for sale. It 

 is almost certain to make good customers for honey. We 

 know, for we are using it ourselves. 



Prices, prepaid — Sample copy free; 10 for 20 cts.; 25 

 for 40 cts.; SO for 70 cts.; 100 for $1.25; 250 for $2.25; 500 

 for $4.00 ; 1000 for $7.50. Your business card printed free 

 at the bottom of the front page, on all orders for 100 or 

 more copies. Send all orders to the Bee Journal office. 



The Premiums we offer are all well worth working for 

 Look at them. 





Miscellaneous Items 



] 



Mr. J. H. Kallmeyer, of Wilson Co., Tex., has been strolling 

 around in Southern California lately. 



Mr. Geo. W. Riker, of Lucas Co., Iowa, reports his crop of 

 extracted honey for 1903 as 40,000 pounds from 300 colonies. Nothing 

 small about that, surely. 



Mr. John 31. Hooker, a former prominent English bee- 

 keeper, has been visiting Southern California recently. He seemed 

 to be very much interested in their method of bee-keeping, and while 

 there visited the apiaries nearest the city of Los Angeles, taking some 

 snap shots with his eyes and camera. 



Mr. AV. T. Richardson, one of Southern California's best and 

 most prominent apiarist for years past, has disposed of his three api- 

 aries of 900 colonies, located in the Simi valley, and has gone East to 

 reside. It is hoped that the change will result in his complete res- 

 toration to health, and his return to California. 



The Honey Crop in the region of Lake Windemere, England, 

 is very small this year, so it is reported. " The wet weather of the past 

 summer has not agreed especially well with the Italian stock that has 

 been introduced into that country." Wet weather seems to work 

 disastrously in at least two ways to the bee-keeper. It prevents the 

 flowers from yielding nectar, and also keeps the bees in the hives. 



Prof. Cook a National Director. — A leading California 

 bee-keeper wrote us as follows last week : 



" As there will he several vacancies on the Board of Directors of 

 the National Bee-Keepers' Association the coming year, I desire to 

 suggest the name of Prof. A. J. Cook as one who would represent all 

 sections." 



Prof. Cook would be a strong member of the Board. He is greatly 

 in favor of co-operation among bee-keepers, too. 



Father Wni. R. Graham, of Hunt Co., Tex., passed away 

 Nov. 27, 1903. He was the pioneer bee-keeper of his State. Dr. Wm. 

 R. Howard, when sending us a picture and sketch of Mr. Graham, 

 said of him : 



" I first became acquainted with Mr. Graham and family in 1876. 

 We were like brothers from our first meeting. No man was held in 

 higher esteem by all who knew him. He was devoted to his friends, 

 and their success was to him a joy which he could not suppress." 



A little later on we will publish Mr. Graham's excellent picture 

 and biographical sketch. 



Southern California Still Dry.— A prominent Southern 

 California bee-keeper wrote us Dec. 9: 



" I note that W. A. Pryal is in great glee over the honey pros- 

 pects in his section of the State, as the result of a copious rainfall. 

 His intimation that the southern portion of the State has also been 

 favored is a mistake, as we have had only a sprinkle of rain thus far, 

 with the consequent result of many long-drawn faces among the bee- 

 keepers of Southern California. Early rains, though, as a rule, are 

 not of much benefit to the bee-keepers, and as our heavy fall usually 

 takes place during the months of January, February and March, it is 

 yet too early to predict a dry year for this section of the State." 



Bee-Tree the Property of the Land-Owner. — Mr. Edwin 



Bevins. of Decatur Co., Iowa, sends us the following clipping: 



OsKALOOSA, Iowa, Oct. 29. — The boys who cut down Henry 

 Brandt's bee-tree and took down the honey have to pay for same. 

 Judgment against two of the boys, Joe Holdsworth and Joe Griffith, 

 was rendered in the sum of $20 and costs, amounting to 36.59, making 

 a total of $56.59 to be paid by the boys. 



The case was brought by Henry Brandt, owner of the bee-tree. 

 He sued for the sum of $00. The boys located a bee-tree on the premi- 

 ses of the plaintiff. They cut it down and appropriated the honey. 

 The plaintifE caused the arrest of the boys, and sought to recover the 

 price of the property. He claimed that between 200 and 300 pounds 

 of honey had been taken, and bees destroyed. In the adjudication of 

 the case, the value of the tree cut down was estimated at $5.00, the 

 corn destroyed by tramping $1.00, value of two swarms of bees, $5.00, 

 and the value of the honey taken $11 — making a total of $20. The 



